After reading the article, I have but one question: What are eigen values?
A quick lookup on Wikipedia reveals that they are used in linear algebra and, for example, matrix transformations. I think this article failed by trying to relate eigenvalues to everyday scenarios, similar to when beginning calculus books give examples involving total pressure on an underwater dam door or mass of a rod as examples for the usefulness of definite integrals. In those cases, you end up calculating the area under the curve, but the curve happens to be the graph of a constant function or a first-order polynomial. Calculating such areas can easily be done by using the elementary formula for the area of a trapezoid.
A quick lookup on Wikipedia reveals that they are used in linear algebra and, for example, matrix transformations. I think this article failed by trying to relate eigenvalues to everyday scenarios, similar to when beginning calculus books give examples involving total pressure on an underwater dam door or mass of a rod as examples for the usefulness of definite integrals. In those cases, you end up calculating the area under the curve, but the curve happens to be the graph of a constant function or a first-order polynomial. Calculating such areas can easily be done by using the elementary formula for the area of a trapezoid.